Sea Turtles In The Gulf Of Mexico

As the world watches and waits for the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico to find some resolution, as the massive task of clean-up continues, and as we hope that containment of the oil will finally happen; our attention is called to the people and wildlife that this black mess is effecting. Most of us can't help but be affected emotionally by the damage being done to Mother Earth, her waters, her human children, and her creatures.

Many Native Tribal traditions use the name Turtle Island for the continent we call North America. In many teachings of the indigenous peoples of North America, Turtle is the oldest symbol for Mother Earth. Turtle can usually be found in many of the creation stories of several cultures around the world. So, with the oil spill my mind couldn't help but go to the Sea Turtles that come to the shores of the States who are kissed each day by the waters from the Gulf of Mexico. These Turtles who have been coming to these shores to hatch their young for centuries are already endangered and many will not be able to survive the toxicity of this oil. The adults will struggle and the hatchlings aren't given much hope of survival.

There is a wonderful article by Rio1 who writes about one of the species of Sea Turtles found in the Gulf of Mexico. Kemp's Ridley Sea Turtle In Louisiana tells about this endangered species in the area. There are updates and information about the oil spill as well. Rio tells us that this smallest of the Gulf Coast sea turtles was making quite a come back in population until this recent tragedy.

We have all seen the devastating images on our local news of the wildlife and the attempts to rescue as many species as we humanly are able to. Not just the sea turtles, but pelicans and other creatures who live and breed on the Gulf Coast shorelines are valiantly being helped by humans each day. I salute the people who are there and the work that they are doing. My heart breaks for the families who are being economically effected by this oil spill at a time when the economy is already so very broken.

Each of us might be able to make some sort of difference. Some might be able to give of their time and help with the clean-up and some may be able to help someone financially. Something that we all can do is pray. We can pray to the God that we worship and ask for healing. Healing of the Earth, healing for the waters, healing for the creatures, and humans. We can ask that the right thoughts can be put into the heads of the people who are in charge of fixing the leak to actually fix it. We can pray that the right thoughts can be put into the heads of the officials who need to make the choices in how best to contain the oil. We can pray for the healing to begin.

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